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Housing & Homelessness

Few things have a deeper or longer lasting negative effect on a child’s development and learning than experiencing homelessness. CDF-NY strongly believes that having a safe, comfortable place to rest one’s head at night is a universal human right and something all people concerned with the well-being of children should work to secure.

Children in the Shelter System

New York is in the midst of a historic homelessness crisis which has had a particularly harmful and lasting effect on children.

On June 1, 2015, for example, a staggering 11,703 families with 23,349 children spent the night in New York City shelters. 70 percent of individuals who are currently experiencing homelessness have families with children. Moreover, this figure does not include the growing number of children who are “doubled up” with friends or relatives, or living in severely rent-burdened homes.

Affordable Housing & Rental Assistance

The increasing scarcity of affordable housing and rental assistance coupled with rising rents throughout the state has forced already rent-burdened families to scramble for a shrinking number of affordable rental units.

In 2012, half of New York State’s rental households were rent burdened, and more than 1 in 3 New York State homeowners spend more than 30 percent of their income on monthly housing expenses. CDF-NY will work to better understand the population of young families experiencing homelessness and connect these families to services that promote a return to housing stability, and will also promote the creation of robust rental assistance programs and advocate for an increase in affordable housing throughout New York City and State.